A while back we had to hire staff for a new position that our team never had before. I wrote a lengthy job description thinking it would answer all the questions of a potential applicant only to be told that the job description published sounded intimidating. I thought I was being comprehensive and helpful, but I didn’t realize what I wrote was overwhelming.
In reality, a well written and concise job description helps you find a great potential hire and will help you weed out those who are not a good fit. Here are a few tips for how to write a great job description that will help you attract your next star performer.
What is the job title? – what will be the position your potential hire is going to fill? What department will they be under?
Who will be the stakeholders? – potential hires should know who they are going to report to or if they will be working with teams.
What are the essential job requirements and what are the key responsibilities? – you don’t have to get into the nitty-gritty details, that can be discussed during the interview. However, you have to be clear about the requirements and qualifications that you think a potential hire should possess in order to do the job right. Also, detail the key responsibilities, preferably in a separate paragraph as bullet points. This way, the potential hire will know what to essential skills are expected of them and compare that against their existing skillset accordingly.
What type of employee is needed? – by this, I mean you should be straightforward and describe if the position is a casual position, a temporary position, a permanent position, etc. Also describe if it is a project-based job or if it is a remote job/freelance job, and what working hours are required.
When is the start date? – let your potential hires know what the expected start date is. This is especially critical if the potential hire is meant to replace someone else.
Put them together and you should have something like this:
- Job title, the department and the person to whom the employee will report.
- The person’s responsibilities: what will the employee be doing (essential responsibilities) and what is their objective (how can they help the company?).
- The most important tasks and responsibilities – a bulleted list of the potential hire’s key tasks that can be discussed in detail upon being shortlisted or interviewed.
- Skills and characteristics that a good candidate should have, employment requirements and desired level of education.
Not only can you use your job description to attract the best candidate, but it is also a chance for you to tell prospective employees the benefits of working for your business. Introduce your company with a few strong points and a link to your website or online business profile.
What are your tips for writing a great job description? Share your tips with us in the comments. Stay humble and hustle hard.
Written by Jaie O. TheHelp